bleaching a toned image

[spijker]

I have a sepia toned print that turned out too dark after all. It's an Ilford MG IV RC print toned with the Kodak Sepia toner. Can I bleach this print with a farmers reducer, say Kodak's? Maybe another bleach? I'm new to toning & bleaching so bear with me if the answer is obvious.

Menno

 

[Dave Miller]

Welcome to the forum Menno.
If your print was toned to completion the answer is no. Sepia toning protects the silver, and therefore prevents the bleach from working.

 

[skahde]

Can I bleach this print with a farmers reducer, say Kodak's? Maybe another bleach? I'm new to toning & bleaching so bear with me if the answer is obvious.

If you didn't bleach to completion you can just try to again bleach it with the bleach from Kodaks Sepia-kit. If you don't like the result put it back into to your print-developer and develop it back to its original state (with a somehow different tone, especially when wet). If you like the result, fix it. This sequence works like farmer's reducer but in a reversible two-step process. Farmer's is just that: bleach and fix in one solution.

If the highlights are to dense it's unlikely that they haven't been toned and can be reversed (highlights are bleached/toned first with the sepia-kit). In this case I'd redo the print. If the shaddows are to dense it is in my view worth a try.

best

Stefan

 

[spijker]

Thanks for your replies guys. It is a big print (40 x 50 cm) so therefore I was wondering if I could still salvage it. But it looks like I'll just have to re-do it. No big deal.

Menno